Last week, Michael Cohen, former personal attorney to President Trump, testified in front of the House Oversight and Reform Committee. According to the New York Times, Cohen testified on Trump’s misbehavior and poor character by saying he has lied in the past about real estate deals and paying off an adult film actress. The testimony also included Cohen stating that Trump’s racism is even worse when in private meetings and evidence such as the $35,000 personal check from Trump as reimbursement of the hush money used to pay off his mistress. Cohen has worked with the Trump Organisation since 2007 as legal counsel, as reported by CNN, and before that was a New York attorney who bought apartments in Trump’s buildings and lobbied for Trump when other residents were in dispute with him.
For Democrats, this seemed like a perfect opportunity to show poor judgment on Trump, something that could be helpful in the upcoming elections. Although the allegations made by Cohen could potentially be seen as criminal conduct, everything said must be taken with a grain of salt considering Cohen is going to jail for three years. It is hard to take everything Cohen has said as the truth given the fact that he has lied to Congress before. For Republicans, these revelations are important because they are seen as an attempt to disrupt Trump’s presidency. Although Cohen has been described as “a lowlife and screwball who’s made his living as an enforcer, liar and thug” by the Wall Street Journal, there seems to be credibility behind his statements as countless books, interviews and investigations have covered the allegations Cohen spoke about. This just shows how different this presidency is compared to past ones because everyone seems to not mind having a president who has a unreliable character. Maybe this testimony will make a difference in his reelection campaign but considering the low amount of publicity behind this testimony, it is likely that it won’t.
The tolerance of this kind of president has also brought to attention that this type of behavior can harm our democracy. If we are all okay with having an alleged liar sitting in the White House, does that mean a presidential candidate can be voted in to Office without even thinking of what their character is? Maybe it will allow for our standard of a commander in chief to lower.
Regina Rivera
